Plate handling device



1945- J. GASTON, JR.. ETAL 2,

PLATE HANDLING DEVICE Filed March 23, 1943 Lows J. @As'romTn. JOSEPH W. PICK INVENT OR.

Patented Aug. 14, 1945 PLATE HANDLING DEVICE Louis J. Gaston, Jr., and Joseph W. Pick, Middletown, Ohio, assignors to The American Rolling Mill Company, Middletown, Ohio, I a corpora tion of Ohio Application March 23, 1943, Serial No. 480,176

7 Claims.

The field of our invention is the provision of a heavy duty lifting device of the grapple type for fiat objects or objects having a flat upper ledge. Heavy metal plates of the nature of armor plate are exemplary of a type of objects for which our structure is especially useful. The general objects of our invention are the provision of an inexpensive but sturdy, heavy duty lifting device which by itself is capable of handling such objects.

In other words, this purpose of the invention con-- templates a lifter facilitating the balancing of the plate or the like which is to be lifted, so that a single lifter is all that is required.

Another object of our invention is the provision of a lifting or handling device of such nature that it can be operated and controlled by one man on one side of the plate or structure to be lifted. More particularly, it is our object to provide a lifting structure which, while it has two arms, is under the control of a single operator as to both arms.

It is an object of our invention to provide a device for lifting and handling plates of various thickness, to which end we have devised engaging means which do not require adjustment over a very wide range of thickness of the plates lifted.

It is an object of our invention to provide a lifter suitable for handling a wide variety of sizes of plates or similar structures, to which end we have devised an embodiment which is self adjusting throughout a considerable range, and which beyond that range may be readily and simply enlarged or made smaller.

These and other objects of our invention, which will be set forth hereinafter or will be apparent to one skilled in the art upon reading these specifications, we accomplish by that certain construction and arrangement of parts,of which we shall now describe an exemplary embodiment. Reference is made to the accompanying drawing wherein:

Figure 1 is a side elevation of our lifter i operation.

Figure 2 is an end view of the lower portion of one of the arms.

In the practice of our invention, we have found that we can attain its objects by providing a lifting device having two arms, one of which is directly attached to the hook of the crane or other means whereby the plate is to be moved, and the other of which is attached to the first arm. In this structure, we have found that an operator on one side, and handling one arm by means of a handle attached thereto, has a degree of control of the other arm beyond that obtainable in ordinary structures. The arms themselves are adjustable; and. the ends of the arms are provided with engagement means of a type hereinafter to be described.

We preferably make the arms themselves of lengths of metallic pipe or tubing, of such size that one of the tubes on either side will lie and slide within the other.

We provide an angularly shaped suspendin means I, or arm perforated at one end as at 2.to accept the hook 3 of a crane or the like. Intermediate its length, the member is perforated so that it may have the other arm attached to it. The remaining end of the member I is shaped as at 4, to fit within the end of a length of pipe 5. It may be attached to the pipein any desired way, as by plug welding, by a bolt, or otherwise.

Pivoted to the member I as by a bolt or pin 6, there is a short holder for a length of pipe forming the other arm. This holder is illustrated at l, and is shown as having an end 8 shaped to go into the end of a length of pipe for the second arm, and another end which is bifurcated at 9 so that it may embrace the member I. The appropriately shaped end 8 is placed within a pipe member ID for the second arm, and is there welded or otherwise fastened.

Each arm has a secondlength of pipe I i or I2 slidable inside the first mentioned lengths 5 or ID. The pairs of pipe lengths are drilled at in tervals, as at l3, so as to provide mating perforations through which a keeper or adjustment device (such as the bolt M) can be passed so as to provide for length adjustment.

On the ends of both inside pipe lengths II or l2, we provide first a yoke-like member 15, having a semi-circular part I5 for engaging the end of the, pipes. This portion'is then welded or otherwise attached to the pipes at a positionspaced from their actual ends. The member l5 further is shaped to provide extensions I! and 18 which, at their ends bear spaced, forwardly extending arms l9 and 20. Between the forward ends of the arms I9 and 20, there is welded or otherwise attached a plate-like member 2 l, having a portion extending above the arms to act as a back stop. It will be noted that the arms are angular in shape and that the plane of the back stop bears an angular relation to the axis of the pipe-like members. The angular relationship is preferable about but can be considerably varied.

A pair of pointed tip members 22 or hooks are provided for each of the engagement means; and these tip members are attached in such manner that their points extend beyond the back stop 20,

as at 23. They may be attached by welding; but it is preferably to bolt them in place as shown, so that they may be renewed when worn.

Finally, we provide each arm with a handle 24. This may conveniently be formed of rod stock bent to a U-shape and attached by welding. It will be noted that one leg of the U is welded to the semi-circular portion I6 of the member l5,

while the other is welded directly to the pipe length H or l2.

It will finally be noted that on the member I we have provided an abutment or stop 25, which operates to prevent the angularity of the arms from diminishing beyond a desired point. The weight of the arms is substantially equal so that when our device is suspended, as by the hook of a crane engaged in the perforation 2, it will hang in such manner that the ends of the arms lie substantially in a horizontal plane, with the arms themselves limited to an obtuse angle by the stop 25. The minimum angularity of the arms will be, say, 100 or so. With the device in this position, it may be lowered until it rests upon a plate 2 6. Then the operator, by grasping either of the handles, can increase the angularity of the arms and slide one of the engagement means along the top surface of the plate and over the edge thereof. Then, by manipulating the arm by means of the handle which he is grasping, he can cause its engagement means to be positioned in such manner that its points engage beneath the edge of the plate on the side on which he is standing. It makes no differenc which handle he grasps; and he never finds it necessary to turn the device around in order to effect the desired engagemnt. Moreover, each back stop 2| has two points 23, one located at each end of it; and the length of the back stop and the consequent spacing of the points is such as to provide a broad bearing for balancing the plate. Hence, but one of our devices is necessary for lifting plates of very large size. A simple positioning of the structure at about the center line of the plate, as judged by eye, is all that is necessary to attain balance.

Modifications may be made in our invention without departing from the spirit of it. Havin thus described our invention in an exemplary em bodiment, what we claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A heavy duty lifting device of the grapple type comprising in combination a pair of arms one of which is pivoted to the other, a stop for limiting the relative position of the arms to an obtuse angle, a member extendable telescopically with relation to each of said arms, each being provided with means for fixing the relative telescoped position of said member with respect to its respective arm, and a pair of hook members demountably secured to each of said extendable members.

2. A heavy duty lifting devic of the grapple type comprising in combination a pair of arms one of which is pivoted to the other, a stop for limiting the relative position of the arms to an obtuse angle, a member extendable telescopically with relation to each of said arms, each being provided with means for fixing the relativ telescoped position of said member with respect to its respective arm, a pair of hook members demountably secured to each of said extendable members, and a back stop member extending intermediate each of said pair of hook members.

3. A heavy duty lifting device of the grapple type comprising in combination a pair of arms one of which is pivoted to the other, a stop for limiting'the relative position of the arms to an obtuse angle, a member extendable telescopical with relation to each of said arms, each being pr vided with means for fixing the relative telescope position of said member with respect to its respe tive arm, and a pair of hook members demountably secured to each of said extendable members, the upper surfaces of said hook members extending substantially in a horizontal plane.

4. A heavy duty lifting device of the grapple type comprising in combination a pair of arms one of which is pivoted to the other, a stop for limiting the relative angular position of the arms to an obtuse angle, each arm carrying a member adjustable lengthwise in alignment with said arm, and hooking means secured to each member, said hooking means having plane surfaces extending substantially horizontally, each hooking means comprising a pair of demountable spaced pointed hook members having plane surfaces extending substantially horizontally, and each member having a back stop member having a surface extending substantially vertically and at right angles to the horizontal surfaces of the hook members.

5. A heavy duty lifting device comprising an arm, another arm pivoted at one end to the first arm at a point spaced from the end of said first arm, said first arm at its end having means whereby it may be attached to a crane hook or the like, stop means limiting the angularity of the arms to each other to an obtuse angle, and engagement means at the other ends of said arms, including each a back stop and engagement points spaced substantially whereby to facilitate balancing of the article lifted, each of said arms having a hen. dle whereby the lifting device can be manipulated by means of either arm.

6. A heavy duty lifting device comprising a pair of arms pivoted to each other adjacent the ends of said arms, stop means for limiting th angularity of the arms to each other to a large angle, an extension on one of the arms beyond its pivot point, angularly related to the arm, and extending away from said angle along a line substantially bisecting it, said projection having means for the engagement of a suspension for the lifting device, each of said arms bearing at its other nd a yoke, a plate fixed to said yoke and substantially vertically disposed when the lifting device is freely suspended, and engagement means affixed to said yokes and extending beyond said plates in a direction to approach each other, for engaging beneath an article lying against said plates.

7. The structure claimed in claim 6 wherein each arm comprises a pair of telescoping tubular elements with means for fixing the relative telescoped position of said elements, and wherein each arm adjacent the end away from the pivot is provided with an operating handle.

LOUIS J. GASTON, J JOSEPH W. PICK. 

